Supplements for Triathletes
Anyone in the HAUS taking or have thougths/opinions about any supplements (herbal or otherwise) purported to be beneficial to Triathletes such as:
Arginine; Rhodiola, Ginseng, etc.
See attached from Competitor Group/Triathlete Magazine
http://triathlon.competitor.com/200...t-comments0
Comments
For me it's all about inflammation and aids in breathing and blood flow.
Some research shows that taking some turmeric extracts can reduce the pain caused by osteoarthritis of the knee. In one study, turmeric worked about as well as ibuprofen for reducing pain.
Curcumin, a substance in turmeric, may help to reduce inflammation. Several studies suggest that it might ease symptoms of osteoarthritis and rheumatoid arthritis, like pain and inflammation. Other compounds in turmeric might also be medicinal.
Now read this about Garlic.. the kind I take enteric which breaks down in the intestine.
Garlic is an herb. It is best known as a flavoring for food. But over the years, garlic has been used as a medicine to prevent or treat a wide range of diseases and conditions. The fresh clove or supplements made from the clove are used for medicine.
Garlic is used for many conditions related to the heart and blood system. These conditions include high blood pressure, high cholesterol, coronary heart disease, heart attack, and “hardening of the arteries” (atherosclerosis). Some of these uses are supported by science. Garlic actually may be effective in slowing the development of atherosclerosis and seems to be able to modestly reduce blood pressure.
Some people use garlic to prevent colon cancer, rectal cancer, stomach cancer, breast cancer, prostate cancer, and lung cancer. It is also used to treat prostate cancer and bladder cancer.
Garlic has been tried for treating an enlarged prostate (benign prostatic hyperplasia; BPH), diabetes, osteoarthritis, hayfever (allergic rhinitis), traveler's diarrhea, high blood pressure late in pregnancy (pre-eclampsia), cold and flu. It is also used for building the immune system, preventing tick bites, and preventing and treating bacterial and fungal infections.
Other uses include treatment of fever, coughs, headache, stomach ache, sinus congestion, gout, rheumatism, hemorrhoids, asthma, bronchitis, shortness of breath, low blood pressure, low blood sugar, high blood sugar, and snakebites. It is also used for fighting stress and fatigue, and maintaining healthy liver function.
Some people apply garlic oil to their skin to treat fungal infections, warts, and corns. There is some evidence supporting the topical use of garlic for fungal infections like ringworm, jock itch, and athlete’s foot; but the effectiveness of garlic against warts and corns is still uncertain.
Lastly L-Arginine
In the body, the amino acid arginine changes into nitric oxide (NO). Nitric oxide is a powerful neurotransmitter that helps blood vessels relax and also improves circulation.
5-6x/week, my morning breakfast is a blended smoothie with a banana, two cups frozen fruit (strawberries, raspberries, blueberries and blackberries), one scoop (18-20g) of whey protein, 2tbsp flax seed, 2tbsp shredded unsweetened coconut flakes, one serving l-arginine and one serving glutamine. Combine with .5 cup of "Simply OJ" and 1.5 cups of water.
This breakfast was given to me by my nutritionist - who is also an endurance athlete - a few years ago, and I've stuck with it.
Hint: for my smoothie, I put all those dry ingredients into six individual Tupperware containers, so I make it easier and have less excuses to not make it daily.
I also strength train pretty seriously, so I take 5 grams of creatine monohydrate.
@ Brent I understand that stuff good for weight training however if your your going long/endurance it will have a negative effect on you.
@David That's interesting you say that creatine has a negative effect on endurance performance. From what I've seen, the majority of research suggests that creatine has either no effect or a slight positive effect. bit.ly/H4JFVq
Multivitamin, Omega 3 (~1500mg), Vitamin D3 (~2,000iu), L-Glutamine (~2,000mg), Vitamin C (~3,000mg per day), Magnesium, Calcium, Vitamin E, CoQ10, Glucosamine, Niacin, Adrenal Support, occasional baby aspirin
For periods of the yr, I also take OptygenHP. Prolly a sham, but I take it anyways.
I almost exclusively drink Emergen-C with all meals (breakfast, lunch, dinner) which in addition to the massive amounts of Vitamin C, also has a bunch of other vitamins/minerals in it.
Good stuff everyone....JWithrow...looking at Optygen it covers the key bases....Rhodiola, Panax Ginseng, Eleuthra....all stuff shown to have benefit in some strong studies....wasn't familiar with it...but may be the way to try them out...rather than individually....and I love the breakfast smoothie...I'm always looking for something like that.
1. Iron loss due to sweating , like Tim mentioned- Iron supplement
2. Oxidative stress/damage- I use glutathione (it's interesting that EVERYONE has heard of antioxidants, but FEW know about glutathione, which is considered the most powerfull antioxidant. I use a cream form as it is poorly absorbed in G.I. tract.....rub it right into the ole knees). Also have found less joint achyness with Tumeric supplementation.
3. Adrenal stress/cortisol control- This is really only an issue during heavy volume times- Will use adrenal adaptogenic herbs, such as Panax Ginseng, Ashwagandha, Rhodiola, and a cream form (again absorbtion better) of Phosphatidylserine -a phospholipid that will lower cortisol.
Other than that a good clean multi colored (as Tim said) meal....I do mine as a Vitamix green smoothie.
How 'bout Extreme Endurance?
I take BCAAs when strength training, never touched EE.
Hello,
I usually avoid using other peoples work to discuss research but these are two fairly descent non-technical articles regarding creatine.
http://jlongrc.hubpages.com/hub/Cre...e-athletes
and
http://www.pponline.co.uk/encyc/cre...t-gain-143
The data and evidence shows the most common complication is GI upset/bloat which is dose dependant and uncommon with doses below 5 gm. The initial fears r/t dehydration/kidney damage etc have not born out. There was actual a good study of rugby and Australian Football players that showed NO increased cramping or heat related effects and even a (non statistical) trend to improved effects in heat tolerance.
Take away is: generally safe, side effects dose related (positive effects come from "saturation" which once achieved only needs maintained) and mild; positive effects well documented for power and strength for bursts of activity up to intervals of few minutes and may also prove protective/assist recovery from long bouts of exercise.
I haven't seen any Triathlon specific data. Info from Bike/Run and other endurance sports such as cross country skiers may not spill over. However, one may presume the effects noticeable in short course triathlon (particularly draft legal) and may also be subtly positive in long course. As someone who has used creatine I've seen/had the GI effects as well as seel rapid wt gain. Both can be mitigated/eliminated with smaller more frequent doses 2-3gm 2-3x day and stop taking creatine 1-2 days pre race (I find the bloat is a day 2 after large dose effect). Your body will have the necessary saturation for several days before returning to baseline.
BTW: BCAAs: Most studies r/t wasting diseases or burn patients etc. However some show and extrapolations suggest taking BCAAs post strenuous exercise (particularly in post work out 30min window) and at bedtime act to improve recovery/reduce catabolic effetcs. "Fancy versions" unlikely to be any better than generic brands. May be especially useful if protein intake suboptimal, particularly at described key times.
I take Nordic Naturals. Vega has a good vegan oil blend as well.
Beth
Hello,
I used to use several different brands of fish oil, however I had the "fish belches" and then after doing some research found that the less expensive brand I was using also gathered the oils from farmed fish. The problem with farmed fish is that the extraction of oils from higher food chain (fish) animals tend to concentrate impurities and toxins.
The real health risks (mercury etc) are likely overstated, however are NOT an issue for cold/wild Krill (lower in food chain).
I have been using "Mega Red" which is available at Costco. The dose is smaller than fish oil (no horse pills!) as the Omega oils are more absorbable. However this brand has a relatively low dose compared to some other brands and lacks the unique (krill/salmon) astaxanthin antioxidant/antiinflamitory. No fishy smell/taste BTW.
Viva labs is prominent on the web search results and looks to have a excellent profile -I HAVE NOT tried this product so cannot formaly recommend. -There are others and there is no FDA or other official dosing recommendations that I am aware of.
I'd check a Lipid profile before starting for a baseline then check again in 3 months to see if your HDL comes up. If so then you're likely takeing enough (or more).
Hope this helps some.
Dave
My 2 cents on L-Arginine. Big time popular with body builders which could give it a bad rap in the endurance community. It is taken by the weight training crowd for its "Pump" effect on muscular appearance/feel and to aid in "profusing nutrients to working muscles" with the belief it will aid in muscle gains and reduced post workout soreness. Not a lot has been done with endurance athletes (kinda like with creatine research). However, work has been done to show the positive effects of beet juice consumption on exercise tolerance & endurance (attributed to its Nitric Oxide effect) and recently similar results have been obtained with dietary consumption of L-Arginine. The findings show significant exercise tolerance improvement at High intensities and reduce oxygen demands by working muscles. I believe the expected improvement was for 1-2% in middle distance run times.(been awhile since I looked into it).
I've taken Several brands and like NO2 Black -its pricy but seems to work well and have a lasting effect. About the only real effect I know I can say when it is working is that (I'm 46y/o) it has a "Viagra like effect" not that I had any issues...just now more ...um..... unintended "end organ profusion". This is due to the effect of dilation of the small blood vessels in body. I've also experienced severely painful "pumps" when I did more heavy weigh training such as preacher curls to failure -this has NOT been the case with other exercise including speedwork/drills.
Soooo....might be of benefit...again most likely in short course where tolerance to efforts above LT are the norm (no data for ultra distance). Also you could try a glass of beet juice a day too!
Brent,
I just looked up Extreme Endurance.... so its essentially Tums (Calcium Carbonate) and Papain (Papaya enzyme) and electrolytes. The (+) is all could be helpful, all ingredients in same pill. (-) nothing earth shattering ingredients wise. you can get Walgreens version of Tums for pennies. And other ingredients available cheep at any vitamin store.
Is there real benefit to the tums....ehhhh maybe. Studies have shown use of pH buffers Can reduce the onset of exercise induced pain and blood acid levels. Use of Sodium Bicarb (Baking soda-yum) has been tried...to little and no effect ...slightly too much and explosive diarrhea
. Also remember that your body USES lactate during prolonged activity and it really isn't the pain of lactic acid that causes the "wall" etc. That causes you to crash n burn.